Fenghou

……

At one o'clock in the middle of the night, Chen Qing was woken up by his own soldiers, "Your Highness, the Haizhou Army has reported for duty!"

Chen Qing was completely sleepy all of a sudden, he washed his face, put on his robe and walked quickly to the outer tent, the person who delivered the military report turned out to be Tong Zhi Tang Huai.

It was still Liu Qiong who knew about King Yong. He knew that some things could not be explained by the military report alone, and he had to send a powerful general. Tang Qian was busy transporting supplies to Donghai Island, and he couldn't get away. Tang Huai was the most suitable general.

Tang Huai knelt down on one knee, "Please refer to His Royal Highness King Yong for the humble position!"

"General Tang has worked hard all the way, please sit down!"

General Tang Huai submitted the report to King Yong, and then sat down to rest. The soldiers came in and served him tea, and Chen Qing also served a cup of strong tea.

Chen Qing read the military newspaper carefully, and there was a detailed list of the money, food and materials seized. He also captured [-] signing troops and [-] prisoners of war from the Song Army.

Chen Qing is most concerned about two points. The first is to seize Donghai Island. The springboard and logistical transit center for the soldiers of Donghai Island have a crucial impact on his northward strategy. The Northern Expedition of the Song Army is by land. , but he is not, he is the same as Emperor Sui Yang's Northern Expedition to Goguryeo, both land and water.

The second thing Chen Qing was concerned about was how much grain and grass materials were seized. The materials on the list really surprised and delighted him, far beyond his expectations.

Seeing the end, Chen Qing was slightly taken aback, and asked, "May I ask General Tang, what do you mean by [-] Song Army prisoners?"

Chapter 190 and Seven Influences

Chen Qing was pacing back and forth in the big tent, and Li Cheng actually gave him [-] prisoners of war from the Song Army. Is this showing his favor to him?Maybe a little bit, give yourself a favor.

But it's more likely that they didn't have enough food and grass. They killed [-] Song soldiers and were afraid of offending themselves, so they simply exchanged them for some food. Liu Qiong gave them five thousand shi of food, and Li Cheng also found an excuse to explain to Wanyan Wushu .

However, Chen Qing still sensed Li Cheng's scheming. I'm afraid he wanted to stir up conflicts between himself and the court, making the court mistakenly think that he and Jin Bing had a prisoner-of-war agreement in advance, and that it was his collusion with Jin Bing that caused the Song Army's [-] troops to be wiped out. The army was destroyed, no matter what, Qin Hui would definitely make a fuss about it.

This is really a tricky thing, not easy to handle!

Chen Qing walked a few steps with his hands behind his back. He couldn't change the emperor's stupidity and prejudice. If the emperor misunderstood him, he would let him go. However, the [-] prisoners of war could help Xu Xiantu. The disastrous defeat of the Song army will definitely have a great impact on Xu Xiantu Big, I have to give Xu Xiantu a hand, and I can't let him be dismissed.

……

In Lin'an, the news of the annihilation of the [-] troops in Haizhou was published by the "Beijing News" and spread throughout Lin'an.

Seeing a small victory just now, killing 6000 Jurchen cavalry, it was inspiring. Unexpectedly, a huge blow came one after another, and the entire army of [-] was wiped out. Only a few thousand people escaped across the Huaihe River, and all the north of the Huaihe River fell.

More importantly, they were not defeated by the Jurchen cavalry, but by the signing army. It was an unprecedented shame, and the ruling and opposition parties all denounced the incompetence of the army.

This fiasco made many people discouraged by the imperial court, and dissatisfaction and disappointment spread in the streets of Lin'an.

The price of rice in the Lin'an market immediately rose sharply. The good Taihu rice was originally sixty yuan per bucket, but it rose to a hundred yuan per bucket overnight, but the most sensitive price was the black market silver price in Lin'an, known as the barometer of the Song Dynasty. While the black market silver price is never officially recognized, it is real and has a huge impact.

The official silver price of the imperial court is one tael of silver in exchange for five official coins. The so-called official coins refer to the Shaoxing Tongbao issued by the Song court, not the Yongwang Tongbao issued by the Yongwang Mansion, or the copper and iron coins issued by the Kingdom of Jin and the Puppet Qi. .

But except for the royal relatives and relatives, no one can exchange for silver at the official silver price. Variety.

After the news of the beheading of six thousand Jurchen cavalrymen came out, the price of silver in Lin'an once fell to one tael for five pennies and eight hundred renminbi, but when the news of the annihilation of the [-] army came, the exchange price of one tael for one tael skyrocketed to one tael for eight. Silver was exchanged for eight guan qian, and then fell back to one tael of silver for seven guan qian, and then stabilized.

At the same time, another news came from the palace that the emperor Zhao Gou fell ill.

In Changfeng Teahouse, Hu Yun specially invited Wang Mu and Zheng Tongquan to drink tea. Hu Yun poured a cup of tea for Zheng Tongquan, and asked with a smile, "I heard that Dongzhu Liu has suffered a lot this time?"

The proprietor Liu they are talking about is Liu Zun, a big businessman in Lin'an. Among the five restaurants in Lin'an, Qingfeng Restaurant is his asset. In addition, he has more than [-] shops and dozens of real estate. He is a big businessman with the same reputation as Zheng Tongquan in Lin'an. There is also a Qingfeng Restaurant in Pingjiang Mansion, and it happens that the proprietor is also surnamed Liu. Everyone thinks it is a family, but it is not the same thing.

Zheng Tongquan said indifferently: "That is his own choice. I have persuaded him, and he has nothing to do if he doesn't listen to me. Now he wants to sell it to me cheaply. How can I take over again?"

Last month, the Song Army beheaded 30 Jurchen soldiers. The morale of the Lin'an Mansion was high, and the land price reached its peak. Zheng Tongquan took the opportunity to sell his six shops and five small houses, and sold them to Liu at a price of [-] yuan. follow.

However, after the news of the annihilation of the 20 Song army came, the land price in Lin'an plummeted. The shops and houses sold by Zheng Tongquan at the highest price were only worth 18 guan according to the current land price. In just a few months, they lost [-] guan. Yesterday, Liu Zun approached Zheng Tongquan and was willing to sell it back to him at a price of [-] Guan, but Zheng Tongquan flatly rejected it.

Wang Mu said from the side: "The "Beijing News" now has a deep understanding. In the past, half of the business newsletter buys houses and sells houses, and even buys more houses. Everyone thinks that the price of land and houses will continue to rise, so they are more reluctant to sell, but this For two days, it was all business news about houses for sale. There used to be a five-acre house in Sanqiao, which was less than [-] yuan, but now it has been listed for two days. In this situation, prices are still falling.”

At this time, the shopkeeper Dong An came over and smiled at Zheng Tongquan: "Old Zheng, how much money do you have?"

Zheng Tongquan said with a smile: "I have some silver in my hand, do you want to exchange it for silver?"

Dong An smiled and shook his head, "It's not me, what money do I exchange, it's the proprietor Wang of the Laoyao Teahouse opposite, he wants to exchange money to buy a house in Jingzhao, and asks for connections everywhere, usually everyone has a good relationship, so I will help him ask. "

"How much does he want?"

"Three million taels of silver!"

Zheng Tongquan frowned and said: "Now the price of silver in the black market is [-]:[-], and the price of Jingzhao black market is [-]:[-]. He has lost a total of [-] yuan. Is he willing to do such a thing?"

"He has no choice. Only silver is easier to carry. It weighs more than 600 catties. It can be mixed with the goods and left. Seventy thousand copper coins are too heavy. If they are found by the checkpoints, they will be confiscated."

Hu Yun next to him was puzzled and said: "He can go to the cabinet! You can use the money ticket and withdraw the money in another place."

Zheng Tongquan sneered and said, "It's time to ask about the good deeds of Baoji Cabinet Workshop. They provide all the transaction records of more than [-] yuan to the imperial court. The Qiumen Office of the Ministry of Household Affairs will come to investigate. If Jingzhao buys land, he will not be able to eat and walk around, and he will be fined a sum of money, and even jailed."

The imperial court strictly forbids officials to buy houses in Jingzhao. This has long been stipulated. Now this regulation actually involves businessmen, but this is the first time Hu Yun has heard of it.

He quickly asked: "When did this regulation start, why don't I know?"

Dong An said: "It's still the previous regulations. Officials are strictly prohibited from buying real estate in Jingzhao. However, when it is implemented, they will be investigated together with businessmen. The most disgusting thing is Baoji Cabinet. I heard that the proprietor Shi Guangping still offered to cooperate with the court. Some people have already been arrested. I was caught, so no one dared to send large sums of money from Baoji Cabinet to King Yong’s territory.”

Wang Mu smiled and said: "Actually, there are still ways. You can remit the [-] guan money to Pingjiang Mansion, and then take out the [-] guan money from Pingjiang Mansion to buy silk and satin, and ship it to Xiangyang. Official shops are willing to buy the price, and then deposit the money in Sichuan-Shaanxi No. [-] Cabinet, and remit it to Jingzhao, [-] guan is still [-] guan, there is no loss.”

Dong An shook his head, "I've thought about this method, but it's still unrealistic. You have to pay [-]% commercial tax when you buy goods, and you have to pay [-]% commercial tax when you go to Xiangyang. The goods worth [-] yuan will be [-] yuan away from the tax. Yes, there is still shipping cost, unless you can increase the price by [-]% to sell, if you can sell it, it’s fine, if you can’t sell it, don’t you just throw it at your hands? After all, you are not a businessman, you don’t know the market, and you don’t know the rules.”

"Then remit the money to Wuhu and withdraw the money from Wuhu."

"Wuhu can't withdraw money, only a few Xiong counties can withdraw money, Xiangyang can withdraw money, but Xiangyang belongs to Yongwang Mansion, and this side is stuck again."

Hu Yun said slowly: "Baoji Cabinet is like this, who is willing to store money there?"

Dong An sighed and said: "That's right, many businessmen have raised their money, and the proprietor Wang of the Old Demon Teahouse has raised all the [-] guan. He is now selling teahouses. I guess their whole family wants to move to Jingzhao. "

Hu Yun pondered for a moment and said to Wang Mu: "The "Beijing News" can publish some information to tell merchants how to buy and sell goods without losing money. For example, you can tell them that if the goods are sold to government shops, they can be exempted from tax. In addition, not all goods They are all [-]% commercial tax, as far as I know, the commercial tax on silk and satin is the highest, if it is fine linen, then the commercial tax is only half, or even lower, this information can be published in the "Beijing News."

Wang Mu nodded, "The Beijing News will launch a column on business news as soon as possible."

The first thousand 190 eight chapters for help

Hu Yun asked Dong An again, "Just now I suddenly thought of a problem. You said that several shiploads of copper money will be seized by checkpoints along the way. What if the merchant is going to Xuanzhou to buy goods? He would have to bring a lot of copper coins with him to withdraw money from the Baoji cabinet in Zhouzhou, so how would he pass the checkpoint?"

"I don't know much about this... humble job, you can ask."

"Go and inquire, if it's really not possible, we can start a black market business and transport the copper coins out for him."

Zheng Tongquan said with a smile: "Transporting [-] guan coins, I am afraid that no one would dare to let the black market do this business! Why don't I set up a counter shop in Lin'an and grab the business of Baoji counter shop."

Hu Yun pondered for a while and smiled: "This method is not bad. If Baoji Cabinet is going to die, we will give it a ride. It is best to find a few powerful families to partner with. Your Highness asked me to contact Liu Xianchen from Pingjiang Mansion. I will contact you tomorrow. Just go to Pingjiang Mansion, if you decide to set up a cabinet shop, you can go with me."

After Zheng Tongquan withdrew from overseas trade, he has been looking for a new family business. He also wanted to enter the cabinet industry for a long time. He has enough capital and background, so he can do it. Now Baoji Cabinet is seriously hurting the interests of merchants. own opportunity.

He nodded: "I have a very good relationship with several local big families, such as the Qian family in Lin'an Prefecture, the Shen family in Huzhou Prefecture, and the Lu family in Pingjiang Prefecture. I'll talk to them again, I believe they are also interested."

Everyone discussed for a while, Zheng Tongquan took a step first, and Wang Mu also returned to the newspaper office.

At this time, Dong An stepped forward and said, "The proprietor Wang of the Old Demon Teahouse talked to me just now. He wants to meet you, so please let me get in touch."

Hu Yun was taken aback, "He doesn't know your identity, does he?"

"Of course he doesn't know. He only knows that you are an old customer of Changfeng Teahouse and come here every day. That's why he got acquainted with me."

Hu Yun nodded, "It just so happens that I have some time today, and I won't be free tomorrow, so let him come here now."

Dong An hurried away, not long after, Dong An brought a middle-aged man, the man bowed and saluted, "My next Wang An is the proprietor of the old demon teahouse opposite, see Special Envoy Hu!"

Hu Yun waved his hands and said with a smile: "Sir Wang, please sit down!"

Wang An sat down, and Hu Yun asked with a smile: "I know there is an old demon teahouse next to the Daxiangguo Temple in Bianliang. Is it related to you?"

"That was opened by my family, founded by my great-grandfather, and later passed on to my grandfather and father. In the third year of Jianyan, my father moved to Lin'an with his whole family, and reopened Laoyao Teahouse here."

Hu Yun smiled and said: "I heard shopkeeper Dong said that you want to move to Jingzhao?"

Wang An sighed and said: "This is actually what my father meant. He proposed to move to Jingzhao a few days ago. I have been a little hesitant until the Song Army was defeated by the signing army this time. I knew that the Song Dynasty was completely hopeless, so I made up my mind. Decided to move."

"You moved to Jingzhao, what about your teahouse?"

"To be honest, I have already sold the teahouse. Someone estimated the value at [-] guan, and I sold it for [-] guan, including the three acres of land, the house and the teahouse. In this way, I have [-] guan in my hand. , go to Jingzhao Buyer’s store, and buying a small house should be enough.”

Hu Yun nodded, "If the requirements are not too high, it is indeed enough."

"I went to Jingzhao for inspection last fall. I considered buying the newly developed land in the west of the city, but now I encountered a troublesome matter. Presumably Special Envoy Hu also knows that my family's money is all in Baoji Cabinet, and I can't remit it to Jingzhao."

"Where do you bring money to buy goods in other places?"

Wang An had no choice but to say: "Bring more than [-] copper coins to buy goods, you have to go to the Qiumen Office of the Ministry of Households for the record, and then you need someone to guarantee, and the Qiumen Office will issue a letter of approval. With the letter of approval, you can go to Baoji Cabinet to remit the money. After I come back, I have to check and pay the tax bill. If I don’t return, the person who sponsored me will be severely fined. I don’t want to implicate others, and the court has been keeping a close eye on it in recent months, so the risk is very high.”

Hu Yun pondered for a while and said, "Then how about taking a special route? For example, asking someone to help you bring the money back?"

Wang An still shook his head, "There are people doing this kind of business in the black market, that is, buying off the checkpoint government. It doesn't matter if you spend a few thousand dollars. I'm afraid that if I give them a hundred thousand dollars, they will just swallow it up. If we can’t find it, then our whole family will hang themselves.”

Hu Yun smiled slightly: "So you want to ask me for help?"

Wang An got up and clasped his fists and said: "Actually, it's not just my family. There are five families in the same situation as me. They want to transfer their property to Jingzhao, but now the imperial court is very strict. We really have no other way but to I implore Special Envoy Hu for help."

Hu Yun pondered for a moment and asked, "How much money do the five families have?"

"A total of about 40 guan!"

If most of the 40 guan is used to buy land from the government, then the Neizhengtang will have hundreds of thousands of guan in tax revenue, which is of course a good thing.

And this is not a difficult task for them, it can be said to be a matter of little effort, even if the court knows, there is nothing they can do about it.

Hu Yun nodded and smiled: "In principle, I can help you. First of all, you have to give me a clear time. Secondly, I also need to prepare a ship, which requires money. Let's do it! A family of two thousand yuan, I will use the Wanshi cargo ship to transport you All the people and money were sent to Xiangyang.

In Xiangyang, you can use the Sichuan-Shaanxi No. [-] cash drawer, which is the official cash drawer of Prince Yong’s Mansion. You can withdraw money in Jingzhao with money tickets, passwords and jade pei. Basically, merchants arrange this way, otherwise Xiangyang will go to Jingzhao The distance is still very long, and there is still a long road, so it is very inconvenient to transport money. "

Wang An was very grateful and said, "I'll go back and discuss it. How can I contact Special Envoy Hu later?"

"Leave a note for shopkeeper Dong! After reading it, I will send someone to find you."

"Then I'll take my leave!"

Wang Anxing saluted and hurried away.

Seeing that Dong An was hesitant to speak next to him, Hu Yun smiled and said, "I know what you are worried about. Actually, there is no need to worry. I won't have any problems with money. The ten thousand yuan I received from them is to supplement our expenses. I will write a letter to report to His Highness."

"It's best to report to His Highness."

Dong An said with a smile: "Actually, there is another way to be humble."

"you say!"

"The special envoy can borrow a sum of silver from Lao Zheng and use it as a turnover, for example, the other party has 40 taels of silver, and then exchange it for 8 taels of silver at the official price. It is much easier to transport the 8 taels of silver to Xiangyang. Zhaohou, the cabinet workshop will give them another 40 taels of money at the official price, and then we will transport their 40 taels of money to Dangtu County in batches, and then go to Xiangyang to exchange 8 taels of silver."

Hu Yun laughed, "Then why don't I write a letter directly to His Highness, and His Highness arranges to give them 40 taels directly in Jingzhao. Wouldn't it be easier? What else do we need for 8 taels of silver?"

Dong An quickly shook his head, "They will definitely not agree, they must follow the money to be at ease, they have the greatest trust in asking the special envoy for help, anyone would not believe it, who knows if it will happen halfway Kill all five of their families and throw them into the Yangtze River."

Hu Yun nodded, "It's feasible to borrow a sum of silver from Lao Zheng, so it's convenient for us to transport!"

……

Although the disastrous defeat of the [-] Song Army made the entire government and the public feel deeply shocked and frustrated, even the emperor Zhao Gou couldn't bear the blow and fell ill.

But there was one person who was in a particularly happy mood. This person was Xiangguo Qin Hui. On the one hand, the disastrous defeat of the Song Army relieved him of the pressure from the Jin Kingdom; Responsibility, then the responsibility can only be borne by Xu Xiantu. This Northern Expedition was planned by him alone.

It is very likely that Xu Xiantu will be dismissed this time.

The first thousand 190 nine chapters cocoon

Qin Hui went back to the study and sat down, his wife Wang came in with a cup of tea and said with a smile: "Master seems very happy today, why?"

Qin Hui chuckled and said, "I went to see the official today, and the official said that he would bear the responsibility for this defeat, so I knew that Xu Xiantu would be dismissed."

"Why did Xu Xiantu want to resign as Prime Minister?"

"You have to understand the implication of the official's words. When he said that he would take responsibility, there must be someone who will take greater responsibility. Of course it is Xu Xiantu. I knew this Northern Expedition was inappropriate and avoided it early."

Mrs. Wang was still puzzled and asked: "But the master also said that the officials who forced the Song army to attack Haizhou were persuaded by Zhu Shengfei. At that time, Xu Xiantu went to Yangzhou to inspect the logistics. How could Xu Xiantu be held accountable?"

"You don't understand this. The responsibility is not based on who came up with the idea, but who is the commander. Xu Xiantu also serves as the Huaibei Xuanfu envoy, which is equivalent to the former army commander. Naturally, he is in charge. It is not Zhu Shengfei's turn. And if If Zhu Shengfei is to be held accountable for his suggestion, wouldn’t the emperor be responsible for the decision?”

Mrs. Wang nodded, "No wonder Master is so happy!"

At this time, the housekeeper reported in the courtyard: "Sign up to the master, Taiwei Shi begs to see you!"

Shi Taiwei is Shi Guangping, Qin Hui nodded, "Please come in!"

Shi Guangping started to climb Qin Hui two years ago, and was immediately recommended by Qin Hui to the emperor. Shi Guangping donated the profits from Baoji Cabinet Workshop and Fengle Building to the emperor for two consecutive years as military salary, and was also appreciated by the emperor Zhao Gou. He was promoted to the Duke of Yue, and Qin Hui recommended him to be Minister of the Ministry of War last autumn, and he was also named Taiwei.

Although the Minister of the Ministry of War does not have much real power, he is already able to participate in the affairs of the Ministry of War. Moreover, the Minister of Military Affairs is the Minister of the Military Academy. It is a good job for Shi Guangping to be the Minister of the Military Academy.

Not long after, Qin Hui came to the guest hall and Shi Guangping had been waiting for a while. When he saw Qin Hui coming in, he quickly got up and saluted, "See Mr. Qin!"